Resident Evil 5 Game Review–Run And Gun And Lots Of Fun
The fact that there actually is a fifth Resident Evil makes me feel all warm and squishy inside, way down deep in the cockles. Yes, I know I stole that shamelessly from Denis Leary, but sometimes, other people say it better than you can. Anyway, today I’m talking Resident Evil 5, and I’m actually pretty happy about it.
This time, you’re playing as Resident Evil stalwart Chris Redfield, who’s been both player and quest object by his little sister throughout the entire series. The Umbrella Corporation has folded–insert rim shot here–and its vast pharmacopeia of horrors has been unleashed onto the black market. After all, what terrorist organization WOULDN’T love control of a drug that turns people into mindless zombies or possibly gigantic twisted monstrousities with superhuman strength?
Anyway, Chris is off to Africa as part of a worldwide psuedo-police organization, the Bioterrorism Security Assessment Alliance, that’s just received reports of Umbrella materials in a desert area known as Kijuju. He’s assisted by his new partner, Sheva Alomar, and a collection of BSAA agents that seem to show up just when they’re needed most but never when you could have used them otherwise. Chris and Sheva need to track down the black marketeers running Umbrella product, run afoul of the pharmaceutical giant Tricell (which you might remember from the movie Resident Evil: Degeneration) and generally try to survive the legion of horrors trying desperately to kill you for reasons that are never really explained.
One of the first things you’ll notice about Resident Evil 5 is the control scheme. Owing just as much to Dead Space as to Resident Evil 4, you’ll be driving Chris from just behind him, looking over his shoulder constantly to see what’s coming. It takes some getting used to, but I find that it doesn’t take long before the control scheme is a smooth and well-reasoned part of the whole experience. You’ll also get a wide variety of weapons available for your use from the get-go, from submachine guns to shotguns to sniper rifles and beyond, and you will need every single round as legions of quasi-undead rush you and try desperately to kill you.
Interestingly, whatever weapon you may find in a stage will be available for you to buy from a shop before going into the next stage, fully loaded, but you’ll be unable to buy ammunition for it, leaving you dependent on whatever you happen to find in each stage. This brings up another point—for the first time that I can recall, a Resident Evil game has been divided into stages, making it a serious departure from the original. It’s not that this departure is necessarily bad, mind you, it’s just very, VERY, different from the style of gameplay that we’ve been engaging in for years as Resident Evil players.
There’s a lot of differences in here…but this doesn’t really detract from the game at all. Resident Evil 5 is actually a very fun and very high-energy experience, and even manages to include some various differing gameplay styles thanks to its addition of a partner. I remember fondly one section where I had to serve as a sniper while my partner went on ahead into a building to investigate.
I had a great time with Resident Evil 5, and I can’t imagine anyone else having less than a great time. So go out and grab a copy—this sucker’s SWEET.
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